'Your Country Needs You'

In the summer of 1914, Britain was the world's
strongest naval, colonial and financial power. When the First World
War ended more than four years later, its place in the world no
longer seemed so secure. Historians now generally acknowledge that
the war contributed significantly to Britain's gradually declining
status as a global power in the 20th century. How and to what extent
did it also change British politics and society?

Volunteers

In 1914, the British army was relatively small,
consisting of just over 730,000 officers and men. One-third of them
served in the regular
army itself, with the greater part stationed in reserve formations,
the most notable of which was the Territorial
Force. The majority of officers were recruited from Britain's
long-established public school élite. Many of the army's
rank and file were unskilled (and often unemployed) labourers.

The outbreak of war rapidly changed this situation. Increased recruitment
to the British army suddenly became imperative. Lord
Kitchener, the newly appointed war secretary, decided not to
rely solely on the Territorial Force as the basis for expansion.
Until the end of 1915, volunteers for military service were instead
organised into units of what became known as the New
Army.

Of the three main components of the British army during the First
World War - the regulars, the Territorials and Kitchener's volunteers
- it was the last group that attracted the most attention. The New
Army provided 30 additional infantry divisions in 1914 and 1915,
many of which contained 'Pals'
battalions made up of groups with shared local, professional
or social backgrounds. Kitchener's volunteers were at the centre
of the brief 'rush to the colours' of August and September 1914,
a mood captured in the famous recruitment poster featuring a drawing
of Kitchener next to the caption 'Your country needs you'.

Men from the British empire and Dominions
also rushed to enlist at the beginning of the war. The Australia
Imperial Force, for example, was formed in September 1914. The Indian army was also quick to contribute. However, the British government
delayed the formation of the British
West Indies Regiment until 1915, and thereafter used the troops
mainly as labourers.

The introduction of conscription

Of all the major powers involved in the conflict,
Britain was the only one still reliant on a volunteer army. However,
given the high casualty rates on the Western Front, a policy of
voluntary enlistment could not be sustained indefinitely. From the
spring of 1915 onwards, the minister
of munitionsDavid
Lloyd George, backed by the Conservative party and the newspapers
of Viscount
Northcliffe, pushed for the introduction of conscription. Asquith
attempted to delay or at least limit it - based on the long-standing
Liberal opposition to a 'standing army' - throughout 1915. But he
was fighting a losing battle.

In January and May 1916, two Military Service Acts were passed, ensuring that all British men were
now eligible for conscription. Although it was only in 1917 that
Britain finally had more troops on the Western Front than it did
at home, conscription marked a new level of commitment to the war
against the Central Powers. Its introduction did not, however, go
unchallenged.

Further research

The following references give an idea of the sources
held by The National Archives on the subject of this chapter.
These documents can be seen on site at The National Archives.

Reference

Document

CAB 1/11/3B:

Memo on the expansion
of the British army, Jan 1915.

EXT 1/316:

Government posters
on munitions workers and exemptions from war service.

MUN 5/19/221/4-5,
37:

Military Service
Act 1916.

MUN
5/62/322/1:

Memo to all recruiting
officers/Territorial Force Association secretaries
on the categories of men exempted from enlistment
to the army, May 1915.